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This painting has kept me occupied over the last few days. It was painted in the traditional way, i.e. layers allowed to dry before the next are applied. I usually paint in a single session in 1 to 2 hours and the painting is small (12″ x 16″ approx). This large size (30″ x 24″) needed several hours, so it was completed in 3 sessions of about 3 hours each. The under layers are painted with Alkyd Fast Drying Oil Colours. The final layers were applied with traditional oils and Liquin medium. The colours used were Cadmium Yellow, Indian Yellow, Yellow Ochre, Cobalt Blue, Ultramarine Blue, Alizarin Crimson plus black and white.

Sorry I could not video the process due to time and size restrictions. The method is basically the same as my usual. Loads of transparent under colour applied unmixed with loads of solvent. The entire canvas was covered with colour and while still wet the first stage of the sky and distance were painted. The following day this had dried (because of the Alkyd Colour + Solvent) and the sky and distance were painted to completion. The foreground initially was painted very dark greens and browns over the dry under colours of crimson and ultramarine blue.

I used Liquin to speed up the drying process and to add a bit of substance and flexibility to my paint layer. This is important as this is a stretched canvas which is a very flexible substrate. I normally use ‘solvent only’ on loose canvas which I later laminate onto a rigid board. This is a very stable surface with very little flexing, quite different from the stretched canvas.

It is difficult to paint the softness of clouds directly as you would paint solid objects. I place the colours on the canvas first and use a clean wide filbert brush to blend by cross-hatching. I do not use a medium, just a small amount of solvent to spread the colour. I use a pipette to add the solvent, a drop at a time as I mix the colours, so I don’t add too much. This helps the blending process as the small amount of solvent evaporates leaving a ‘dryish’ layer of paint. I avoid medium because the colours would spread into each other producing a single featureless colour. The process does take a bit of practice but the final effect makes it worth it.

This painting uses only 3 colours (Cadmium Yellow, Alizarin Crimson, Cobalt Blue) plus black and white. The black and white are Alkyd Fast Drying Paints. The colours are Artist Quality Traditional Oil Colours. It is recommended to use Alkyd colours under traditional oils as they dry faster. They can be mixed together if the mixing is thorough and the paint applied in a single thin layer. Avoid having distinct layers of different paint types. If the drying rates in the upper layers are faster (as with Alkyd) than the lower layers, paint might be prone to flaking off. Thick paint, varnishing, removing varnish, cleaning etc exacerbates the problem.

There is no medium used, only White Spirits. The size is 16.5″ x 12″. This was painted in a single ‘wet on wet’ session in about 2 hours.

Here is the process. To view in realtime change setting to .25. Quality can also be set up to 1080HD.

Like this:

Glenbarrow in the Slieve Bloom Mountains is the source of the River Barrow. Along with the Massif Central in France, these mountains are the oldest in Europe. They were once also the highest at 3,700m. Weathering has reduced them to 527m. On a clear day, one can see the high points of the four ancient provinces of Ireland.

This painting uses only 3 colours (Indian yellow, Permanent Rose, Prussian Blue) plus black and white. There is no medium used, only White Spirits. The size is 16.5″ x 12″.

Here is the video of the painting process. To view this video in realtime change speed setting to .25. Quality can also be increased to 1080HD.

Late afternoon sunshine illuminates the trees on this high bank of the Barrow River. The Barrow Drainage of the 1920’s deepened the river along its length and the dredged material was deposited on the banks. In many places, like here, this material is still intact, creating interesting landscapes of sun and deep rich shadows.

The sunlit green of the trees against the sky was produced with a transparent mix of yellow and a little blue. Normally highlighted areas in oil painting contain white and are opaque. In this case a transparent film of colour was placed on the wet sky colour. Where this background was mostly white it made the colour glow. Notice when the same colour is placed on a background with less white, how muted it is. To match the tone white was added to the mix used in these areas.

There are 3 colours used in this painting (Indian Yellow, Permanent Rose, Ultramarine Blue) plus black and white. There is no medium used, only White Spirits. The size is 16.5″ x 12″.

Here is a video of the painting process. To view in realtime change setting to .25. Quality can also be set up to 1080HD.

Petite Pursuits
I’m an Irish girl who has finally given in to an unexplored love/obsession with dolls houses and miniatures. My blog journey to document, share with others, and most of all LEARN, starts here.

The Nest
I live in East Galway, Ireland. I am an artist, homeopath and mother to our four boys and little girl, and wife to Fergal. With our little hairy dog, too many cats, hens, cockerel and two little white ducks, we home educate our children.